of oakland california, is looking for new ideas to stop a surge in gun violence. last night, during a city council meeting, it hired william bratton, the former los angeles police chief, as a consultant. last year, there were 117 gun deaths in oakland and 14 since the shooting in newtown, connecticut, six weeks ago. we asked john blackstone to look into this. >> it's just a war zone that's going on. >> reporter: hundreds of oakland residents attended last night's city council meeting. jessica hauly is an expectant mother.Ñi >> i tried to talk about this a lot before i came because i didn't want to cry. i'm sad and scared to be having a black boy in oakland! >> reporter: that fear of gun violence is shared by vice mayor larry reid. >> when i go out into community meetings, i have a bulletproof vest that i wear, but i don't have a gun. >> reporter: oakland has a long history of crime linked to drugs, gangs and poverty, but on a single day this month four people were shot dead within six hours. what's the cause of this crime surge in oakland? >> it's too many guns on the streets in the hands
